Lee Smith, ACE, (born June 10, 1960) is an Australian film editor who has worked in the film industry since the 1980s. He began his film career as a sound editor before establishing himself as an editor. His breakthrough came when he began collaborating with director Peter Weir. Smith is best known for his work on several of Christopher Nolan's films, including Batman Begins (2005), The Prestige (2006), The Dark Knight (2008), Inception (2010), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Interstellar (2014) and Dunkirk (2017), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing. Smith has edited all of Sam Mendes's films since 2015, including Spectre (2015), 1917 (2019) and Empire of Light (2022).
Life and career Smith was born in Harefield, Middlesex in England. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Film Editing for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2004) and The Dark Knight (2008). He was also nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Editing for The Dark Knight and for Inception (2010). He was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Sound for The Piano (1993). He began his career as a sound editor/sound designer for films such as Dead Calm (1989), The Piano (1993) (for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Sound), The Portrait of a Lady (1996) and Holy Smoke! (1999). Smith was also editing films during this interval; he was one of the editors for RoboCop 2 (1990).
He began his notable collaboration with director Peter Weir on the 1982 film The Year of Living Dangerously, on which he was an associate editor working with Weir's longtime editor William M. Anderson. He was credited as a co-editor with Anderson for Fearless (1993) and for The Truman Show (1998). He was the sole editor for Weir's Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), for which Smith was nominated for the Academy Award for Film Editing and for an "Eddie Award" from the American Cinema Editors.
Smith has edited seven films with director Christopher Nolan. He was nominated for a second Academy Award and American Cinema Editors Award for The Dark Knight (2008). In 2010, he received another nomination for the American Cinema Editors Award for his editing work on Inception; Inception was listed as the 35th best-edited film of all time in a 2012 survey of members of the Motion Picture Editors Guild. In 2018, he received an Academy Award for his work on Nolan's Dunkirk.
Since 2015, Smith has regularly collaborated with Sam Mendes, editing his films Spectre (2015), 1917 (2019) and Empire of Light (2022). He will edit the upcoming film series The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event (2028).
Filmography Editor Year Title DirectorNotes1986Dead End Drive-InBrian Trenchard-Smith1987Howling IIIPhilippe Mora1989Communion1990RoboCop 2Irvin Kershner1992Turtle BeachStephen WallaceBlinky Bill: The Mischievous KoalaYoram Gross1993FearlessPeter Weir1996Lilian's StoryJerzy Domaradzki1997JoeyIan Barry1998The Truman ShowPeter WeirCo-edited with William Anderson1999Two HandsGregor Jordan2000RiskAlan White2001Buffalo SoldiersGregor Jordan2002Black and WhiteCraig Lahiff2003The Rage in Placid LakeTony McNamaraMaster and Commander: The Far Side of the WorldPeter Weir2005Batman BeginsChristopher Nolan2006The Prestige2008The Dark Knight2010The Way BackPeter WeirInceptionChristopher Nolan2011X-Men: First ClassMatthew Vaughn2012The Dark Knight RisesChristopher Nolan2013ElysiumNeill BlomkampCo-edited with Julian ClarkeEnder's GameGavin Hood2014InterstellarChristopher Nolan2015SpectreSam Mendes2017DunkirkChristopher Nolan2019Dark PhoenixSimon Kinberg1917Sam Mendes2022Empire of Light2024ArgylleMatthew VaughnBetter ManMichael GraceyCo-edited with Martin Connor, Spencer Susser, Jeff Groth and Patrick CorrellThe Unholy TrinityRichard Gray2028Sam Mendes
Other credits Year Title Director Notes1978Little Boy LostTerry BourkeAssistant sound editor1980The Chain ReactionIan BarryAdditional sound1981Puberty BluesBruce BeresfordEditing assistant1982Turkey ShootBrian Trenchard-SmithDubbing editorThe Year of Living DangerouslyPeter WeirAssociate editor1985Burke & WillsGraeme CliffordSound effects editor1988The Navigator: A Medieval OdysseyVincent WardSound effects editor / Sound effects supervisorBarracudaPino AmentaTelevision film Sound editor1989Dead CalmPhillip NoyceSound designerDead Poets SocietyPeter WeirAdditional film editor1990Green Card1992Lorenzo's OilGeorge MillerAdditional picture editor1993The PianoJane CampionSound designer1994Little WomenGillian ArmstrongSound designer1995Tunnel VisionClive FleuryFoley walker1996The Portrait of a LadyJane CampionSound designer1999Holy Smoke!
Awards and nominations Academy Awards Year Category Title Result2003Master and Commander:The Far Side of the WorldBest Film Editing2008The Dark Knight2017Dunkirk
BAFTA Awards Year Category Title Result2008The Dark KnightBest Editing2010Inception2017Dunkirk
Other awards Year Title Award/Nomination1998The Truman ShowNominated- Awards Circuit Community Awards for Best EditingNominated- Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Editing1999Two HandsAACTA Award for Best Editing2003Master and Commander:The Far Side of the WorldNominated- Satellite Award for Best EditingNominated- American Cinema Editors for Best EditingNominated- International Online Cinema Awards for Best EditingNominated- Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Editing2008The Dark KnightAwards Circuit Community Awards for Best EditingInternational Online Cinema Awards for Best EditingGold Derby Awards for Best EditingHollywood Post Alliance for Best EditingNominated- ACE Eddie for Best Edited Feature Film – DramaticNominated- Satellite Award for Best EditingNominated- International Cinephile Society Awards for Best EditingNominated- American Cinema Editors for Best EditingNominated- Online Film Critics Society Award for Best EditingNominated-Italian Online Movie Awards for Best EditingNominated- Awards Circuit Community Awards for Best Editing of the Decade2010InceptionBroadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best EditingLas Vegas Film Critics Society Awards for Best EditingOnline Film Critics Society Award for Best EditingPhoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best EditingCinEuphoria Awards for Best EditingHollywood Post Alliance for Best EditingGold Derby Awards for Best EditingOnline Film & Television Association for Best EditingItalian Online Movie Awards for Best EditingNominated- ACE Eddie for Best Edited Feature Film – DramaticNominated- Satellite Award for Best EditingNominated- Alliance of Women Film Journalists for Best EditingNominated- Awards Circuit Community Awards for Best EditingNominated- Boston Society of Film Critics Awards for Best EditingNominated- International Cinephile Society Awards for Best EditingNominated- International Online Cinema Awards for Best EditingNominated- American Cinema Editors for Best Editing2011X-Men: First ClassNominated- Hollywood Post Alliance for Best Editing2012The Dark Knight RisesNominated- Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best EditingNominated- Hollywood Post Alliance for Best Editing2014InterstellarNominated- Saturn Award for Best EditingNominated- Hollywood Post Alliance for Best EditingNominated- Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best EditingNominated- Gold Derby Awards for Best EditingNominated- Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards for Best EditingNominated- Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- Cinema Bloggers Awards for Best Editing2017DunkirkBroadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best EditingGold Derby Awards for Best EditingAlliance of Women Film Journalists for Best EditingPhoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best EditingACE Eddie for Best Edited Feature Film – DramaticBoston Online Film Critics Association for Best EditingLos Angeles Film Critics Association Awards for Best EditingOnline Film Critics Society for Best EditingHollywood Professional Association for Best EditingHawaii Film Critics Society for Best EditingHollywood Post Alliance for Best EditingSeattle Film Critics Awards for Best EditingAmerican Cinema Editors for Best EditingInternational Online Cinema Awards for Best EditingAwards Circuit Community Awards for Best EditingNominated- Satellite Award for Best EditingNominated- Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- San Francisco Film Critics Circle for Best EditingNominated- San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best EditingNominated- Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best EditingNominated- St. Louis Film Critics AssociationNominated- Chicago Ohio Film Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- Chicago Indie Critics Awards for Best EditingNominated- International Cinephile Society Awards for Best Editing20191917Phoenix Film Critics Society AwardsBroadcast Film Critics Association Awards for Best EditingMusic City Film Critics' Association Awards for Best EditingChicago Independent Film Critics Circle Awards for Best EditingNominated- Chicago Film Critics Association Awards for Best EditingNominated- Hollywood Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- San Francisco Film Critics Circle for Best EditingNominated- Satellite Award for Best EditingNominated- Seattle Film Critics Awards for Best EditingNominated- St. Louis Film Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Awards for Best EditingNominated- Alliance of Women Film Journalists for Best EditingNominated- Austin Film Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- Central Ohio Film Critics Association for Best EditingNominated- Online Film Critics Society Awards for Best Editing
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